{"id":563417,"date":"2021-06-30T04:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-30T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2021\/06\/30\/imf-mission-chief-celine-allard-international-cooperation-minister-rania-al-mashat-talk-to-lamees\/"},"modified":"2021-06-30T04:00:00","modified_gmt":"2021-06-30T04:00:00","slug":"imf-mission-chief-celine-allard-international-cooperation-minister-rania-al-mashat-talk-to-lamees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/egypt\/2021\/06\/30\/imf-mission-chief-celine-allard-international-cooperation-minister-rania-al-mashat-talk-to-lamees\/","title":{"rendered":"IMF mission chief Celine Allard, International Cooperation Minister Rania Al Mashat talk to Lamees"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a> The highlight of last night\u2019s talk shows: Kelma Akhira\u2019s Lamees El Hadidi\u2019s<\/strong> extensive chat with IMF mission chief Celine Allard<\/strong> on the state of (and outlook for) the Egyptian economy as we finalize drawdown from our USD 5.2 bn standby loan program with the international body. The interview covered what the fund thinks Egypt is doing right and wrong, and what the Egypt-IMF relationship will look like now the 12-month program is over. You can watch the full interview here (watch, runtime: 44:01<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Authorities have managed \u201cwell\u201d to weather the economic shock caused by covid<\/strong>, owing to \u201cprudent and timely policies,\u201d alongside fiscal and monetary support that has preserved economic stability \u2014 \u201ca very important balance to strike,\u201d Allard said (watch, runtime: 4:45<\/a>). Egypt is on track to return to pre-covid growth levels, and despite the increased allocations for healthcare and tourism spending in the FY2021\/2022 state budget, the country\u2019s budget deficit is expected to continue narrowing, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSocial protection has been very important [to Egypt]\u201d to handle the pandemic\u2019s<\/strong> economic fallout. <\/strong>The expansion of financial assistance for low-income groups, especially the Takaful and Karama programs which are now covering more than 3.6 mn households, has been vital to prevent the virus and the ensuing lockdown measures from inflicting lasting harm, according to Allard.<\/p>\n

Increased spending flexibility will help speed up the country\u2019s vaccine rollout:<\/strong> Having the ability to purchase more vaccines and upping the local production of jabs will only benefit the country\u2019s post-pandemic economic recovery (watch, runtime: 3:17<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Further structural reform to boost private-sector involvement in the economy will be<\/strong> crucial<\/strong> for Egypt\u2019s continued economic development, as would maintaining its current levels of economic support, she said.<\/p>\n

Al Mashat talks about her new book:<\/strong> El Hadidi also sat down with International Cooperation Minister Rania Al Mashat, who last night announced the launch of her new book documenting Egypt\u2019s international cooperation and development finance experience (watch, runtime: 14:05<\/a>). The book aims to serve as a manual for developing and emerging countries so that they can learn from Egypt\u2019s reform experience, the minister said.<\/p>\n

We discussed the new book with Al Mashat last week:<\/strong> Check out the interview here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Also on the airwaves last night:<\/strong><\/p>\n